Chandigarh/Khanna (Ludhiana), July 28, 2026 (Yes Punjab News)
Punjab Cabinet Ministers Barinder Kumar Goyal and Tarunpreet Singh Sond on Tuesday inaugurated irrigation infrastructure projects worth ₹70.52 crore in the Khanna Assembly constituency, aimed at expanding canal irrigation and reducing dependence on groundwater.
The projects were inaugurated at Bhattian village, where the ministers said the initiatives would strengthen irrigation facilities across nearly 30 villages and benefit more than 37,000 acres of agricultural land.
Addressing the gathering, Water Resources Minister Barinder Kumar Goyal said ₹50.02 crore had been spent on concrete lining of 68.32 kilometres of canals, including the Khanna Rajwaha, Beed Kishan, Lalheri, Bardhal, Kotla and Narayangarh minors. In addition, ₹20.50 crore was invested in laying 23.40 kilometres of underground irrigation pipelines.
He said canal irrigation has now reached over 37,000 acres in the constituency, adding that the remaining agricultural land would also be connected to the canal network in the near future.
Goyal said the area irrigated through canal water in Khanna had increased from 21,506 acres in 2022 to 42,079 acres. He added that the Punjab Government has spent ₹7,572 crore on modernising the state’s canal network, resulting in a sharp increase in canal water utilisation in agriculture from 26 per cent in 2022 to 86 per cent at present.
Highlighting the impact of the initiative, the minister said groundwater levels had shown improvement after several years, a development that, according to him, had also been acknowledged by the Union Water Resources Minister in Parliament.
He further said the department had enhanced the carrying capacity of the canal network by 12,000 cusecs without acquiring additional land or incurring extra expenditure. At present, nearly 39,000 cusecs of water is flowing through 1,511 canals across Punjab, he added.
Cabinet Minister Tarunpreet Singh Sond said previous governments had allowed several regions to turn into groundwater-stressed “dark zones” due to excessive dependence on tube wells. He credited the Bhagwant Singh Mann-led government with prioritising canal irrigation, which, he said, had reduced pressure on groundwater resources and lowered electricity consumption.
Sond also said farmers in Punjab are now receiving eight hours of uninterrupted daytime power supply for agricultural tubewells, enabling them to irrigate their fields during the day instead of working through the night.
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